The science of fireworks

The secret is the gunpowder inside the fireworks. The use of fireworks has ancient origins: probably around the year 1000.

Fireworks are essentially composed of two charges of gunpowder: one in the “pocket” and one in the “heart”.

The first charge of gunpowder, the one contained in the “pocket”, is found in the lower part of the fire. It is the one that allows the fire itself to take off towards the sky, after being inserted into the mortar.

The second charge of gunpowder, the one contained in the “heart”, is located inside the fire and is the one that allows it to explode once it reaches the sky. Around this bag of black powder there are balls made up of chemical substances which create all the colors and effects that make fireworks so fascinating, during the explosion. This phenomenon is exactly what happens inside the stars.

Sodium for yellow, strontium for red, copper for blue, barium for green, this chemical element can be also combined to obtain more colors. For example, sodium and strontium together give the orange.

Inside the firework, little balls of chemical substances are placed following accurate geometries that determine the shapes of the firework: 2D, 3D, ….

But fireworks shows are even more surprising. You don’t have to imagine that someone lights the fuse manually. Every group of fireworks are connected to a control unit that can be programmed to obtain a precise sequence of explosions. This is why music fireworks are possible.